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Ski holidays are more popular than ever, and if you are thinking of booking one, but you’ve never actually skied before, there is no need to worry. Every year novices take ski holidays, and they have a great time once they have settled into their chalets and taken the first tentative steps on the snow. It will help if you take lessons on a dry ski slope before your holiday as this will give you much greater confidence on the first morning in your ski chalets as you prepare for the real thing.

Once you arrive at your location and have dropped all your gear off at the catered chalets, or whichever kind of chalets you have booked, you can arrange lessons from the experts. This can either be on a one to one basis, or in a group, whichever you feel best suits you.

You will need special clothes for ski holidays – the right gloves are essential to keep your hands warm, as are salopettes, which not only keep your legs warm but also help to keep snow out if you fall over, which lets face it, you probably will!

Don’t forget to choose a hat to keep out the chill wind, and a jacket which is suitable for cold temperatures in the high mountains. If you don’t have your own skis – and as a beginner, this is likely – this isn’t a problem, as you can book skis and boots at the resort. There is also plenty of room in the chalets to store them, so you don’t have to worry about finding somewhere to keep the equipment when it isn’t in use.

Hello
Snowboarding involves moving at very high speeds down steep hills past other skiers and boarders, as well as natural and man-made obstacles. Falls, some of the spectacular variety, are going to happen, regardless of how good a boarder you are, and collisions are relatively common.

Also, since snowboarding takes place at high altitudes in the winter, the weather can range from sunny and bright to bitterly cold, with conditions changing rapidly from one slope to the next and from one hour to the next.

The skier and snowboarder safety code, which is printed on virtually every lift ticket and posted in numerous places around every ski area, lists some of the "inherent dangers and risks of skiing [and snowboarding], including: changing weather conditions; existing and changing snow conditions; bare spots; rocks; stumps; trees; collisions with natural objects, man-made objects, or other skiers; variations in terrain; and the failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities." That's a pretty fair assessment of some of the dangers you'll encounter while snowboarding.